Watering newly planted things in the garden got me out on this mighty hot first afternoon of summer, when I noticed a couple Great Spangled Fritillaries (Speyeria cybele) enjoying the sweet nectar of Purple Coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea).
As adults Great Spangled Fritillaries enjoy a life much longer than many butterflies. Some butterflies live for a month, at most, others have a life span of just one week. These fortunate butterflies are around, fluttering among the flowers, from mid-June till mid-September.
The host plants of Great Spangled Fritillaries are native violet species. These are the only things their caterpillars will eat. Many gardeners look upon violets as weeds in their gardens. I want these butterflies, so I don’t discourage violets.
Great Spangled Fritillaries make great models for my camera.
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2 responses to “Staying Cool”
Beautiful pictures! It was extremely warm here today as well. Looking forward to some rain soon.
Hi Diane!
Sorry to hear that you are experiencing the extreme heat as well. And yes, the rain issue. I see, by looking at drought.gov that this portion of the state is in moderate drought now. Ugh. I would wish for rain, but I have to be careful about that (just in case I would happen to get my wish) that I don’t really wish too hard. I don’t want flooding either! But oh my are things ever dry!
Glad you like the pictures! Butterflies are a joy to capture in pixels – to see those incredible little feathers close up – such fun!
Hoping you get more pleasant weather very soon, with just the right amount of rain!
Thank you so much for reading my posts!
Bren